It’s an election year, and Sen. Frank Morse, R-Albany, is in the hunt for a second term, yet he has announced a comprehensive state tax reform plan that most long-time Oregonians would slowly shake their heads over as political poison: Morse is proposing a 5 percent sales tax as the cornerstone to a comprehensive tax reform and state funding package. He is championing it to Oregon decision-makers, editorial boards and the public.

This isn’t about politics, said Morse; it’s just good business: A designated 5 percent sales tax — tied to an income tax reduction and a cut in the capital gains tax — would spur the economy, put more money in people’s pockets and tap the withheld resources of the 10 percent of the population that doesn’t pay taxes and the state’s underground cash economy. It also would capture taxes from the state’s tourism industry.

The major necessities of life — including food, gas, medicine, rent and utilities — would be excluded from the sales tax.

The plan has the support and input of Democratic Sens. Ryan Deckert and Kurt Schrader, and was crafted with advice from former state economist Paul Warner. It would both reduce the income tax burden by $4.4 billion in 2007-09, yet yield a $994 million net tax revenue gain.

Sounds good, but I can almost hear eyes rolling. Voters have said no nine times. Sales taxes are a new tax, even if they are tied to a permanent reduction in established tax rates. Over time, those rates will rise. However, this proposal would lock the lower income tax rates into the constitution and require a vote to increase the sales tax rate.

The best reason to give Morse’s plan consideration is that it’s time to consider a sales tax tied to tax reform. The piecemeal approach just isn’t working. No initiative petition, Legislature or tax group has succeeded in adequately, reliably and predictably funding state government, particularly K-12 and higher education since voters passed the first major property tax limitation measure more than 15 years ago.

In a bit of illustrative timing, the lawsuit that Corvallis and five other school districts filed last week against the state for failing to adequately fund schools indicates that school administrators have had it with having to enact ever-growing lists of unfunded federal and state mandates and never knowing whether they will have enough money to open school — or whether they will have to go cap-in-hand to the voters again for an operating levy.

Morse is a good businessman, and a good leader with a sound idea. His plan deserves a hard look and fair-minded consideration.

Theresa Novak is the editorial page editor at the Corvallis Gazette-Times. An audio version of this column is available at gazettetimes.com under the “GT to Go” podcast link.